


Better Half

by evaunit0



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Future Fic, Ghosts, Hand Jobs, M/M, SPOILER: they both die & are ghosts together ta-da, Sacrifice, but like... not really nsfw... it's more soft, technically holograms but you get it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-17
Updated: 2018-01-17
Packaged: 2019-02-18 12:52:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,837
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13100511
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/evaunit0/pseuds/evaunit0
Summary: Keith wasn't meant to change history; only to protect it. | Written (late) for Sheith Quote Week Day 7:Beloved mentor / Nothing was worth Shiro's pain.





	Better Half

**Author's Note:**

> we're starting in medias res bc i need to get this out of my writing folder... i obviously didn't finish this in time for the prompt week & i want it GONE

_**Before.** _

Shiro severed Zarkon's arm in a splattering of violet ichor, raising his Galra hand as a shield for his eyes while Zarkon screamed, staggering onto his knees as the blow rocked him, and Shiro shakily approached, bayard held fast by both arms, slowly steadying to finish the job.

Keith's lungs felt like sandbags, but he roused himself, trying to stand again. He stumbled - even with the help of his bayard - and white acid filled his vision until he could finally blink it away.

Both he and Shiro had taken fatal hits, but sheer willpower seemed to be keeping their bodies anchored to this world - at least while their adrenaline was spiking. Still, Keith noted with annoyance, the center of his equilibrium was off, and he knew he'd probably lost too much blood in his legs; either that, or his muscles were torn beyond repair.

Keith glanced up shakily, praying the dizziness left him. The various slashes on Shiro's torso had long since stopped gushing, and had now begun to trickle down his shattered armor more like egg whites; the sight of congealing blood making Keith bite his cheek, mostly to keep from insisting they retreat.

But Keith knew, of course, this was all or nothing.

His ankle was impossibly twisted when he managed to get upright, but Keith could look plainly at Shiro's back heaving, trying to muster the strength to finish his job.

 _You don't have to fight anymore,_ Keith could imagine him murmuring to him later, in passing. Maybe in bed. Maybe helping him undress for a shower. _It's over. We're free, forever._

Keith could almost imagine the relief on Shiro's face before his eyes caught movement in Zarkon's other arm, mangled, but mutely writhing. Shiro either didn't see it, or perceive it as a threat - regardless, Keith inched forward by instinct. 

They had fought together so long, Keith knew exactly what Shiro's next move was, exactly where he was going to land the final hit.

_He's going to run it straight through Zarkon's chest._ Keith thought, or muttered, he couldn't tell - his brain felt like it was being smothered by ash and soot.

Zarkon didn't deserve a clean death, but Keith wouldn't have expected anything different from Shiro. The emperor who had enslaved him, tortured him, now would step into death on a clean footpath.

The problem with Shiro was that he always kept his heart open.

 _Vulnerable_ was the word Keith used.

It also happened to be what the Galra used.

Zarkon saw the opening in Shiro's side within seconds after Keith registered it, but he was already sprinting, ground going numb against his heels, moving with leaps that could only be described as feral.

Keith rushed forward, aiming for Zarkon's neck, feeling justified in playing the executioner role for once.

And somehow, comfortingly, Keith always knew it'd end up like this.

Within the seconds before the clash, Shiro's eyes met his in a brief moment, ringed with black and purple, and Keith instantly wished he could wipe them away, as if they were simple stains, and not bursted blood beneath his skin.

He wasn't sure why time was moving so sluggishly, but he blamed it on his battle high.

In the recent past, Keith had discouraged the liberal use of the term "hero" in reference to himself, mostly from civilians, partly from his own team.

Looking at the angle he was coming at Zarkon, now, he guessed, they'd all call him a martyr, and he wouldn't be able to stop them.

Keith felt the blunt of his bayard sink into Zarkon's neck seconds before a searing tear opened in his stomach, clearing a piercing hole through his abdomen. His guts spurted in front of him like puke.

Shiro screamed, and Keith could picture his vocal chords snapping from the rawness of the noise's gusto.

Zarkon slumped forward, neck still impaled on Keith's bayard, but Shiro stepped over his torso mindlessly to get to Keith, eyes sunken and dark, like the world wasn't _finally_ saved.

It was probably because he was dying.

Shiro screamed again, and Keith coughed, lungs wet. Shiro's own blood was mixing unsafely with Keith's as he lifted him into his arms, careful not to move the sword in his center. He was muttering something, but Keith's muted brain couldn't distinguish the babble.

Distantly, he worried about Shiro. Who would protect him? Who would search for him?

Who would love him?

Keith knew they had all found a family in the team - it was impossible to overlook that. But they were a pair. A set of two that was evident from listening to them talk, watching them touch; even when separated, the connection was there, unable to be lost.

They were destined in the way that Keith felt was insatiable - he was in a constant state of _wanting_ Shiro, wanting everything between the two of them to be theirs alone. 

At that enormous thought, it wasn't a surprise when he blacked out the first time.

He had memorized the feeling of Shiro's hands long ago, the feeling of swooping wings against his back shoulder blades.

Shiro was crying, he realized belatedly as he came to - helpless tears dripping down from his chin to Keith's face.

"Keith, hang on, baby."

"Shiro - I'm not," Keith paused, letting a breath rattle out of him. They both knew there was no coming back from this. Keith used what he assumed was the rest of his strength to crane his neck up, looking down the length of Shiro's body. Blinking, Keith felt the blood pool under his tongue when he spoke. "You're hurt, too, Shiro, you need help, too-"

Shiro clenched his jaw as he cradled Keith closer, hoping to defend them both from rogue shots. Keith couldn't perceive much, but they seemed to be in an alcove made of rubble, stashed away from the onslaught of battle. Shiro's reply was curt, but Keith knew it was from masking pain. Still, it grieved him more than anything. "Not before you."

They stayed silent, letting the background noise of lasers and small explosions fill their ears while they both breathed, breath coming shallower for both of them. The shots continued as Keith coughed again, chest caving. The universe didn't know the war was over. Not yet.

For the first time in a long time, Keith wanted to cry.

It was all so unfair - that the happiness was only theirs for right now, but they couldn't even begin to feel it. Now now.

After a moment, Keith tried to lift his head again, but winced in pain at the motion. He gratefully felt Shiro tilt him on his side to face him. "Shiro, is Coran coming with the castle?"

Shiro swallowed, teeth stained with blood. "I don't know."

The second blackout was stronger, and he only came to when he heard his name in Shiro's voice. From the pale lighting veiled beneath his eyelids, and the sudden vertical incline, Keith knew they were boarding the castleship's ramp.

"Shiro, you have to let me handle this," Allura's voice was bitter, fiercer than Keith could ever recall. "You're hurting yourself more." Shiro didn't move; instead, Keith felt a grip on his hand increase.

"I'm not leaving him," Keith pried his eyes open, rusted with blood, to see Shiro meet his eyes - even now, with a broken face, there wasn't an ounce of pity in his look.

Only compassion.

He was lying beside him in a stretcher, Keith dully realized. Shiro's complexion was mausoleum pale, but Keith wanted to curl close to him like a blossoming fire when he spoke. "I love you, Keith. I love you."

Keith tried to speak, move, do anything to tell Shiro _I love you, too_ , but his mind flatlined all too quickly.

 _I can't live without you,_ Keith wanted to scream. He wouldn't get the chance.

All he saw was gray.

_**After.** _

There was obviously some inhuman aspect to being summoned as a hologram - having your soul exist in a temporal space - but mostly, it was like sleeping great lengths, no matter what the time span.

And really, neither of them couldn't complain about the rest they were catching up on.

In the beginning, the team had begun to sleep in the AI room, curled into the base of Keith and Shiro's pedestal like loyal companions. Keith and Shiro had a good laugh about it privately, and even once with Allura, but she insisted the luxury remain available, especially as they began the process of sealing away the lions once more. It only hit them all when Lance started crying for Blue later that night. Allura coddled him through it, and even Keith laid a sympathetic hand on his back.

To make up for it, of course, was the endless virtual space where they could create whatever world they wished. There was endless landscape to imagine, of course, and the entire team fully exploited it - for Lance, the scenic beach was suffice. As for the techies, more advanced civilizations were frequented. Even Allura would sneak away from her duties once and a while to allow Keith and Shiro to take her on a picnic - something she'd ask for every year on her birthday.

Both Shiro and Keith briefly discussed the exotic locations they'd like to revisit, but currently, they were fairly tame in terms of exploration.

For now, they were content with lazy nights, sometimes spent in apparitions of Shiro's dorm room back at the Garrison, sometimes in Keith's shack with the open desert outside the window, and other times, nothing but the stark castle halls around them, grounding them.

They deserved this - this luxury of experiencing everything the universe had taken away from them.

Truly, they had enough time to play by themselves; Allura had gotten in the habit of leaving their AI operation system switched ON, so that they were permitted to exist as they pleased.

It was a few months before Hunk, Matt, and Coran all teamed up to upgrade the machine, making it so that Shiro and Keith were free to roam the Castle of Lion's breadth. While the four of them were tinkering, Allura and Lance had began to set up a full governmental arrangement among planets, mostly with the quick universal laws of "Govern yourselves; don't colonize."

Shiro and Keith laughed as they drafted the actual, formal document with Kolivan, who grunted at its many-paged completion.

"It sounded a lot more concise out loud," Lance muttered, and Shiro suppressed a laugh.

Over time, however, all disputes were settled, and life in space was more of a routine than a necessity.

Keith knew they'd have to talk about the rest of their lives, eventually. Collectively. If everyone intended on staying in space forever, to live in the castle.

"For us," Shiro sighed, running a hand around Keith's thigh. They were both propped up against their podium - a place they had grown more accustomed to than fond of. "They're staying here because they feel guilty."

"You know that's not the full reason, Shiro," Keith placed his hand on top of Shiro's to keep him wrapped around his leg, and smiled softly as Shiro gave a light squeeze to his inner thigh. "You know Allura needs them right now, too. They'll go home when they feel the time is right."

Shiro was quiet a minute before he snorted. "I guess I have to stop being the leader sometime, right?"

Leaning over for a kiss, Keith hummed his reply. "If I recall correctly, you checked out of that role multiple times, each instance leaving me in charge."

"Well, you _were_ always the stronger one."

Keith smirked, not allowing Shiro to feel remorse. Not now. "Funny. I was going to say the same thing about you."

Turning his head, Shiro snorted, and pushed his lips against Keith's with a clumsy grin. His voice was rough, enough that Keith wanted to put his hands against his chest to feel him speak. "No wonder you could always out-wrestle me at the Garrison," Keith panted out a laugh between kisses, letting Shiro hoist him onto his lap while moving down his neck. "You cheated with your alien genes."

Unable to refuse the taunt, Keith mumbled, "Maybe I'm just that good."

There was a bite on the upper cusp of his earlobe. Then, "Better than me."

"Hey," Keith grasped Shiro's jaw between his fingers, rattling him just a little. "You need to stop. Everything will work out."

Shiro rolled his eyes, waiting until Keith's fingers turned to soft petting against his cheeks, and they were mouthing at each other again - Keith's hand halfway down Shiro's pants before muttering a reply.

"We don't even understand how long forever is, Keith."

Space hadn't deterred him from what he wanted when he was alive, and in most cases, that something was Shiro - so it sure wasn't going to stop him in the afterlife.

So Keith shrugged, stroking Shiro hard enough that he wheezed with the effort of staying upright. 

"Just enough time to make up for being apart," Keith said, reveling in the noises Shiro was making, overwhelmingly grateful that they at least had _this_ \- each other - and this chance at happiness. Keith's free hand was cradling the side of Shiro's face, letting him lean into his, watching him kiss his palm between groans. "I love you, Shiro. The rest doesn't matter, okay?"

"Okay," Shiro breathed, shuddering. "But I wish it didn't take death for us to get here."

Despite himself, Keith laughed, and Shiro smiled shakily, still flushed. "We were stupid. We thought we had enough time to take things slow. Now we really do," Keith brushed his lips over Shiro's tilted neck, and whispered, "And I want to do everything. Fuck waiting."

Shiro swallowed a moan in time to kiss Keith, letting their mouths wet, tongues sliding against each other like useless teenagers as Shiro comes apart in Keith's hand, instantly sedated.

The next morning, Allura makes both of them promise they'll at _least_ have the decency to put clothes on, especially while they're living in _her_ castle.

Instead of making a _living_ joke, Lance tries to high-five Shiro at the news, but Hunk pulls him away before Allura can see. Meanwhile, Pidge and Keith's fistbump goes unnoticed. Matt winks.

For the most part, Keith and Shiro learn, time is like that. Unnoticed. Free.

Years later, there are new Alteans wandering the castle halls, running circles around an aged Allura's skirt. Most are refugees, of course, but Allura does have one child, one that Shiro and Keith are the proud godfathers of.

They learned Altean in order to read him traditional stories and lore, trying to tell him about when his mother had fought with them for peace. Neither of them had Coran's raconteur nature, but they tried regardless.

Coran had passed away with great ceremony, as was fitting. Lance had personally returned from Earth to arrange the funeral, and even stayed another year to comfort Allura.

"The beard is new," was all Keith had commented, and Lance rolled his eyes, looking to an amused Shiro.

"Everyone's a critic," Lance snorted, hooking a thumb over at Keith. "Especially those who stay young forever."

"The age suits you, Lance," Shiro said, and Keith had to agree. He had a family back on Earth now, kids and all - he had even brought photos, and other assorted Earth paraphernalia they had no doubt would end up in the hands of Allura's growing son.

Later on, even Hunk and the Holts all came in for a week, crashing the castle like they were still in their twenties.

Except they weren't, and another twenty years was nothing when your soul is tied to a castle's infrastructure. By far, the cruelest thing Keith and Shiro learned was that humans do, in fact, live fleeting lives.

All of them.

It was their turn to feel selfish when they heard the report of Pidge's death - _She was too young,_ Shiro spat, but Keith knew they pictured a different Katie, one that was a quarter of Shiro's size, but made up for it in spirit.

It wasn't long - or maybe it was - before Allura couldn't come out of her room most days, not except to visit Shiro and Keith in person, although they could drift about the castle without materializing.

She still found the whole science of it strange and convoluted, and often laughed at how Red paladins are fit for this lifestyle.

Shiro was holding her up with one arm, but gently elbowed her with the other. "I'm here, too, you know."

Allura rolled her eyes. "You two come in a pair - don't act like Red didn't care about you on his behalf."

In the end, she passed the protection of the castle and her son onto them. After all, they'd remember whatever threatened to be lost, under whatever title was deemed to them.

_Paladins, guardians, defenders of the universe._

But really, they were content with being two souls preserved together, each a perfect half.

**Author's Note:**

> i really want allura to have a son... idk why! maybe for that alfor ii title... also i feel like sheith being goddads to a prince is perfect like those two are the mentor's i'd want
> 
> some other small things i didn't include because i wanted this to be much longer but also... i'm super busy...
> 
> -lance has twin girls & sometimes he summons his bayard all the way on earth when he gets worried about their safety  
> -the garrison trio + the holts remain super close even though they don't really feel complete without their space teammates  
> -matt ironically wears alien t-shirts & frequents alien spotting sites just for the lols of course  
> -shiro & keith are happy. really. out of everyone, they're the best at understanding what fate throws at them, knowing when to fight it, and knowing when to let it be.
> 
> tumblr: paladinlion


End file.
